These state overviews provide general information on important cities, state history, geography, natural resources, industry, and famous residents, while final sections summarize facts such as population, motto, state flag, etc. Generic spreads include "Did You Know?" sidebars and lackluster photographs. Overall the volumes are bland but may be useful for school reports. Timeline. Glos., ind.

Gr 3-5-These titles are written in a more conversational tone, with larger print and less text, than the popular "America the Beautiful" books or "From Sea to Shining Sea" series (both Children's Press). The books are colorful and eye-catching, with captioned photos, easy-to-read charts, maps, and boxes containing "Fun Facts" and "Famous People." Although readers will find the asides interesting, the abundance of extra information on each page occasionally interrupts the flow of the text. One shortfall is that all four books cite Hispanics as a distinct group and a distinct percentage of the state's residents, but they do not appear as such on the population pie chart. Purchase where additional materials are needed for this audience.-Melinda Piehler, Sawgrass Elementary School, Sunrise, FL Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.